The Majority Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has said no law mandates the Bank of Ghana (BoG) to report its daily activities to Parliament contrary to claims by the Minority Leader.
The Minority in Parliament on Tuesday among others called for the resignation of the central bank boss and his deputies over what it described as mismanagement after the bank posted losses totalling GHC60.81 billion for the 2022 financial year as against profit of GHC1.23 billion recorded in 2021.
The losses were a result of the government’s domestic debt restructuring activities and the depreciation of the cedi, among other effects.
Threat of protest
Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday (8 August), Minority Leader, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson said they will stage a march to occupy the Bank of Ghana, if the trio do not step down.
“We call for the resignation of the governor of the central bank and his deputies within 21 days,” he said. “We are resolved to embark on popular action to occupy the central bank and drive out the team of inept, callous and criminal mismanagers of the finances of this country and Save the Bank of Ghana.”
Saved
Touching on the development on Accra-based Oman FM, Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said the economy would have crashed if the BoG had not intervened by supporting the government financially from its international reserve.
“We should not make everything about NPP and NDC,” the MP for Suame said. “Ato Forson should have known better because he has held the position of deputy minister of finance before and knows the operations of the Bank of Ghana. So, if you politicise issues of the BoG, it is not good for the country.”
“There is no law that mandates the BoG to report its daily activities to Parliament. The law only mandates the BoG to report foreign exchange receipts to Parliament and the BoG has always complied to this provision. The BoG does not report directly to Parliament.
“The constitution says that if you pass any law that is inconsistent with the constitution, that law is null and void. It’s either the Minority are over exaggerating issues or have not had time to examine the facts of the matter,” he said.
Listen to Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu in the attached audio clip below:
Reporting by Fred Dzakpata in Accra
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